Category: Real Estate Finance

There’s a growing divergence between the optimism seen by stock market traders, business executives and consumers, and actual economic activity. The Atlanta Fed’s GDPNow model for GDP growth, which mashes 13 subcomponents together, was cut on Thursday to 1.8% from 2.5%, marking its lowest forecast for the quarter. The biggest culprit was the weak consumer

The number of Americans who applied for unemployment benefits near the end of February fell by 19,000 to 223,000, setting a fresh postrecession low and illustrating the strength of the U.S. labor market.

Treasury yields declined on Wednesday to their lowest levels in more than three weeks as congressional Republicans struggled to convince certain conservative legislators to support their plan to repeal and replace Obamacare. Yields, which fall as prices rise, were on track to fall for a fourth straight session, with the yield on the 10-year Treasury

Investors will lock in Friday on speeches by the Federal Reserve’s top policy-makers, Yellen’s speech is scheduled for 1 PM Eastern Time. Warming up traders for the boss, four other Fed officials take the stage before her: Fed No. 2 Stanley Fischer, Fed Gov. Jerome Powell, the Chicago Fed’s Charles Evans and Richmond’s Jeffrey Lacker.

U.S. stock futures traded in tight ranges on Thursday, as investors kept their eye on a speeches from Federal Reserve members including Chairwoman Janet Yellen, as well as an important vote on a health-care bill.

ADP says February was third-best month of jobs growth of the recovery. Private-sector employment increased by 298,000, ADP reported Thursday. That gain suggests a much better than forecast reading for the payrolls report due Friday, where expectations are for 200,000 jobs added.